Haha… maybe I can actually add something to this. I started working for GeekSquad three years ago as a GeekSquad technician, became the key repair technician (I was the guy who started at 7 AM every day to fix things before the store opened), worked my way into management where I stayed for a while before stepping down due to disagreements with the company, and finally became a super part time technician (working only a few days a week) fixing computers. I know ol’ GeekSquad inside and out.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Everyone
Wow! Cables are expensive!
They are. This is where electronic stores make their money. Cost on your typical $40 cable is usually somewhere around $1 to $1.50, and this is usually why you find them for so cheap on eBay. HDMI is insane, frankly. Last I checked Best Buy had some high quality HDMI cables for well over $100. Here’s the catch: ‘high quality’ relative to these cables usually doesn’t make a big difference. If you are really concerned about small improvements in picture quality and whatnot, brands like MONSTER are great for you, otherwise go with cheapo ‘junk’—it usually works just about as well. That garbage USB cable at Longs Drugs (or sometimes even in the .99 store!) will power your printer every bit as well as some gold plated $60 cable in a big store. eBay is your friend.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pmjoe
They'll be glad to let the Geek Squad charge you $90-$300 to install it, I'm sure.
You’ll be charging $129 or $159. I haven’t seen anything official (I didn’t even know they would be carrying Apple TV until I saw this article) but it will follow the same price model applied to the likes of Wireless Routers and the XBox 360. Best Buy preaches that these high prices are appropriate for many people (and admittedly they are) but they tend not to be for people who are comfortable with technology.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BRussell
Cool I can't wait to buy their extended warranty!
I imagine you are being sarcastic? I hear a lot of sarcasm about those things (often-times, justly so). I prefer to buy from Apple so I can get AppleCare protection plans, personally, but as far as products go the best things to buy extended warranties on are portable devices with moving parts: MP3 players (i.e. iPods), portable DVD players, laptops, car stereo equipment. If the buyer actually remembers they have it and uses it, it pays off for most people (and saves others a great deal of pain). On a laptop, for example, it easily pays for itself with a battery replacement and at least one normal failure (including a frayed AC adapter – no MagSafe for you). If you are buying an Apple, buy it online from Apple, or buy it in the Apple Store. I couldn’t recommend entering a service contract with Best Buy with a Macintosh (GeekSquad is not equipped to support them satisfactorily). I buy service contracts on things like new game systems (I’ve received two new XBox 360s now without a single call to Microsoft). I don’t buy service contracts on games, movies, non-portable entertainment center equipment, most small items.
Back to Apple TV, if BestBuy cannot service it, they will probably offer what they call a ‘PRP’ or a Product Replacement Plan. PRPs are awesome because you don’t have to deal with their shoddy repair centers—if something happens, and it isn’t abuse, they’ll give you a new one (you’ll have to buy a new PRP if the exchange takes place outside the manufacturer warranty, but that’s good because you’ll be able to [extend your contract[). The drawback of PRPs is that they last two years (rather than the normal three of a PSP). That said, enterprising folk may enjoy the value of a PRP on something like an Apple TV, but normal folk, on average, will probably just lose money on it. If $299 is a huge investment for someone, I suggest they wait on Apple TV first for Apple to work out any main board bugs and whatnot, second to see if people are having serious problems with them. When things look good, buy with no warranty. If things don’t look good, buy with a warranty. In the end, though, you’ll probably still be better off with AppleCare.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pt123
Best Buy will be looking forward to selling $150 HDMI cables to get the best picture and $150 surge protectors to protect the valuable investment.
Sales floor people will offer the high-end HDMI cables.
The $150 surge protectors are those big monsters with noise filtering. I thought the noise filtering would certainly be a scam when I first heard out about it, but I was actually amazed to find out they do work—for certain things. Plasma televisions, for example, are highly prone to ‘unclean’ energy in your power, causing picture distortion, reduced quality, and sometimes much greater problems. Cutting those disturbances out of your power completely eliminates these problems. I use one of those power strips in my own entertainment center and it actually does make a difference with numerous devices (but then again, I don’t mind doing so, because my $200 power strip cost me about $40). Home users with most anything but a plasma television (or other certain high end televisions) and some disposable income should keep the hell away from these things. Any sales person trying to offer one in relation to the Apple TV as a good value is lying. (But don’t worry, they’ll be much more interested in the warranty.)
"This just in... Best Buy to carry Apple TV in ALL of its' retail locations!
On the down side, early reports indicate that Best Buy sales staff are unsure as to, quote, "what an Apple TV is", unquote, and there have been reported instances of Best Buy staff telling customers to buy an apparently non-existent product, "PC TV", instead. More on this as it becomes available."
.
Exactly! How many times will Apple get burned by Best Buy and its pimple-faced, PC-weenie clerks before it realizes that Best Buy is the enemy. Apple products have no more business in a Best Buy store than a BMW at a Hyundai dealership. In my neck of the woods Best Buy doesn't even list iPods in its Sunday flyers anymore, just Zune and Creative.
Yeah, I wish I could tell anyone with home theater equipment that you get absolutely NO added benefit by paying more for a digital cable. A $20 HDMI cable will transfer just as good of a signal as a $100 one. A $5 RCA cable will transfer digital audio just as well as a $50 one. Assuming you take care of it, a cheap optical cable will transfer digital audio just as well as an expensive one.
Yes, and no.
I'm not a high end cable nut. There are pairs of audio cables that sell for $20,000 per two meter length.
But, often the $20, made in China, HDMI cable, is not very good either. The shielding is often poor. If you use a short cable of, say three feet, or one meter, they might be fine. But when you get a long cable, there will be problems. Better cables not only have 100% shielding, which cheaper cables don't have (it's usually around 85%), but they have heavier gauge conductors as well. That provides a stronger signal over a long run, considered to be over 12 feet, three meters, or so. Better connectors have heavier gold flashing, usually 50 microns, rather than the 20 to30 microns cheaper versions have. There are other differences as well.
For example, buying a professional cable made by Belden will cost about two and a half times as much as the cheap cables, but is much better.
Buying the exotic cables with silver wire, and other odd configurations, is a total waste of money.
You MUST buy digital cables though. NEVER use audio, cables for anything other than audio. Video, and digital cables have the proper impedance of 75, or 72 ohms. Using the wrong cable WILL lead to poor signals.
Haha? maybe I can actually add something to this. I started working for GeekSquad three years ago as a GeekSquad technician, became the key repair technician (I was the guy who started at 7 AM every day to fix things before the store opened), worked my way into management where I stayed for a while before stepping down due to disagreements with the company, and finally became a super part time technician (working only a few days a week) fixing computers. I know ol? GeekSquad inside and out.
They are. This is where electronic stores make their money. Cost on your typical $40 cable is usually somewhere around $1 to $1.50, and this is usually why you find them for so cheap on eBay. HDMI is insane, frankly. Last I checked Best Buy had some high quality HDMI cables for well over $100. Here?s the catch: ?high quality? relative to these cables usually doesn?t make a big difference. If you are really concerned about small improvements in picture quality and whatnot, brands like MONSTER are great for you, otherwise go with cheapo ?junk??it usually works just about as well. That garbage USB cable at Longs Drugs (or sometimes even in the .99 store!) will power your printer every bit as well as some gold plated $60 cable in a big store. eBay is your friend.
You?ll be charging $129 or $159. I haven?t seen anything official (I didn?t even know they would be carrying Apple TV until I saw this article) but it will follow the same price model applied to the likes of Wireless Routers and the XBox 360. Best Buy preaches that these high prices are appropriate for many people (and admittedly they are) but they tend not to be for people who are comfortable with technology.
I imagine you are being sarcastic? I hear a lot of sarcasm about those things (often-times, justly so). I prefer to buy from Apple so I can get AppleCare protection plans, personally, but as far as products go the best things to buy extended warranties on are portable devices with moving parts: MP3 players (i.e. iPods), portable DVD players, laptops, car stereo equipment. If the buyer actually remembers they have it and uses it, it pays off for most people (and saves others a great deal of pain). On a laptop, for example, it easily pays for itself with a battery replacement and at least one normal failure (including a frayed AC adapter ? no MagSafe for you). If you are buying an Apple, buy it online from Apple, or buy it in the Apple Store. I couldn?t recommend entering a service contract with Best Buy with a Macintosh (GeekSquad is not equipped to support them satisfactorily). I buy service contracts on things like new game systems (I?ve received two new XBox 360s now without a single call to Microsoft). I don?t buy service contracts on games, movies, non-portable entertainment center equipment, most small items.
Back to Apple TV, if BestBuy cannot service it, they will probably offer what they call a ?PRP? or a Product Replacement Plan. PRPs are awesome because you don?t have to deal with their shoddy repair centers?if something happens, and it isn?t abuse, they?ll give you a new one (you?ll have to buy a new PRP if the exchange takes place outside the manufacturer warranty, but that?s good because you?ll be able to buy a new PRP). The drawback of PRPs is that they last two years (rather than the normal three of a PSP). That said, enterprising folk may enjoy the value of a PRP on something like an Apple TV, but normal folk, on average, will probably just lose money on it. If $299 is a huge investment for someone, I suggest they wait on Apple TV first for Apple to work out any main board bugs and whatnot, second to see if people are having serious problems with them. When things look good, buy with no warranty. If things don?t look good, buy with a warranty. In the end, though, you?ll probably still be better off with AppleCare.
Sales floor people will offer the high-end HDMI cables.
The $150 surge protectors are those big monsters with noise filtering. I thought the noise filtering would certainly be a scam when I first heard out about it, but I was actually amazed to find out they do work?for certain things. Plasma televisions, for example, are highly prone to ?unclean? energy in your power, causing picture distortion, reduced quality, and sometimes much greater problems. Cutting those disturbances out of your power completely eliminates these problems. I use one of those power strips in my own entertainment center and it actually does make a difference with numerous devices (but then again, I don?t mind doing so, because my $200 power strip cost me about $40). Home users with most anything but a plasma television (or other certain high end televisions) and some disposable income should keep the hell away from these things. Any sales person trying to offer one in relation to the Apple TV as a good value is lying. (But don?t worry, they?ll be much more interested in the warranty.)
I can't argue with what you've said, except the part about cables. Like it or not, there are poor cables, ok cables, and good cables. There are also hyped cables.
The difference between a poor cable and a good cable is pretty obvious, even the the person just looking at it. The connectors on poor cables often fail within a short time, or become intermittent. They also result in digititus, where you see breakup on the screen. If you are in an area where ther are doctors offices, or Ham operaters, x-ray machines, etc you will get interference. And by near, I mean a few blocks. Computers can also cause interference, as can a wireless network, your own, or someone elses.
Ever see the sticker on a readio, or other product that says " complies F.C.C regulation part 15", subpart "C"...? That refers to interference causation, and rejection.
What they are saying is that certain devices cause interference, and that this device complies with the regulations pertaining to the rejection of that interference.
Cheap cables don't comply, because cables aren't subject to the regulations.
Noise rejection is important, if your power has problems, or if a computer system, or network is on the same line in the home. I use a TripLite. don't buy the no name brands.
I can't argue with what you've said, except the part about cables. Like it or not, there are poor cables, ok cables, and good cables. There are also hyped cables.
Thank you for correcting me and clarifying my explanation. I should have been more specific about shielding and some of the potential problems (particularly in long stretches of network cable, or in audio/video cable). I also learned a few new things!
Thank you for correcting me and clarifying my explanation. I should have been more specific about shielding and some of the potential problems (particularly in long stretches of network cable, or in audio/video cable). I also learned a few new things!
Except for my spelling, and other crappy wording mistakes.
I can't argue with what you've said, except the part about cables. Like it or not, there are poor cables, ok cables, and good cables. There are also hyped cables.
The difference between a poor cable and a good cable is pretty obvious, even the the person just looking at it. The connectors on poor cables often fail within a short time, or become intermittent. They also result in digititus, where you see breakup on the screen. If you are in an area where ther are doctors offices, or Ham operaters, x-ray machines, etc you will get interference. And by near, I mean a few blocks. Computers can also cause interference, as can a wireless network, your own, or someone elses.
I was running my computer during a lightning storm a few days ago and I never did see a sparkle or artifact on my LCD when connected using a $20 2m DVI cable. We have a TIG and a MIG welder in the building and I've never experienced the problems that you describe, though the building phone system does crackle when the welders are in use. A 200mW WiFi transmitter in the next room doesn't cause me problems either, and there are TV/radio transmitter towers a mile or two away too. It's Philips brand cable, but it's still fairly cheap, it's fairly low-nonsense but it's got that braided wire look. I'm not seeing a point in going with anything that's more expensive.
I was running my computer during a lightning storm a few days ago and I never did see a sparkle or artifact on my LCD when connected using a $20 2m DVI cable. We have a TIG and a MIG welder in the building and I've never experienced the problems that you describe, though the building phone system does crackle when the welders are in use. A 200mW WiFi transmitter in the next room doesn't cause me problems either, and there are TV/radio transmitter towers a mile or two away too. It's Philips brand cable, but it's still fairly cheap, it's fairly low-nonsense but it's got that braided wire look. I'm not seeing a point in going with anything that's more expensive.
Well, you're lucky, what can I say? I can show you lots of crap on that cable though, if I plugged it into some of my test equipment.
But, Tv's are more subject to this that computer monitors. I also doubt that you have a 12 foot, or longer, cable going from your computer.
I have a small AC/DC TIG in my metal working shop downstairs, but, naturally, I never use it when I'm watching something.
Well, you're lucky, what can I say? I can show you lots of crap on that cable though, if I plugged it into some of my test equipment.
But, Tv's are more subject to this that computer monitors. I also doubt that you have a 12 foot, or longer, cable going from your computer.
12ft or longer aren't common lengths to use for home entertainment cables that I've seen. I do have a 25ft cable for my video projector and even then, RFI isn't a problem there.
Test equipment is kind of academic, it would be interesting, but if the signal and equipment is resilient enough then it's not going to be apparent, then it's not going to make a difference as far as the end user is concerned. I'd be concerned about it if it's medical equipment, but it's just entertainment equipment.
12ft or longer aren't common lengths to use for home entertainment cables that I've seen. I do have a 25ft cable for my video projector and even then, RFI isn't a problem there.
Test equipment is kind of academic, it would be interesting, but if the signal and equipment is resilient enough then it's not going to be apparent, then it's not going to make a difference as far as the end user is concerned. I'd be concerned about it if it's medical equipment, but it's just entertainment equipment.
Long HDMI cables are common in the home theater market, particularly with front projection, where they can be 25 feet or even 50.
If the signal is strong, and your equipment is good at rejection, there might not be a problem until the cheap cable starts to go wonky, which it will.
But test equipment is not academic. It will tell you what is happening. If your cable is causing problems because its bandwidth is too low, you will have a softer image than you should, but you likely won't realize it. If shielding isn't up to snuff, you might not see a really lousy signal, but you might have some "crawl" in high detail, and high contrast areas. You might not see it at normal viewing distances, because most people are too far from their Tv to see the fine detail, but it will be there. The occasional digital blocking may be blamed on the broadcaster, but it's interference getting through the shield, and causing a loss of digital integrity.
It's the same problem with USB, Firewire, and Ethernet cables. You may think they are working well, but your re-transmissions of packets, or bits, slows everything down. You don't realize it's happening, but it is.
Cheap cables are all different. Some may have decent shielding, but crappy connectors, some may be the other way around. Some may be bad at both.
At least you have a name brand, so that's usually at least ok. But there are many "brands" out there that have no parentage, such as store brands, etc. Those, I would recommend for everyone to stay away from.
And, as an aside, some cables that look to have gold flash, don't. The truth in packaging laws aren't as focused as I would like them to be, but I've seen cheap packages that say "gold colored connector pins", or some such wording. Those are NOT gold flashed. At least they are required to say that.
t's the same problem with USB, Firewire, and Ethernet cables. You may think they are working well, but your re-transmissions of packets, or bits, slows everything down. You don't realize it's happening, but it is.
At least data quality matters there. That's a place where it is much more important than worrying about whether there's a minor flutter that's not visible at standard viewing distances of an entertainment device. For digital TV, signal reception quality is a far greater factor than the quality of the digital video cable.
At least data quality matters there. That's a place where it is much more important than worrying about whether there's a minor flutter that's not visible at standard viewing distances of an entertainment device. For digital TV, signal reception quality is a far greater factor than the quality of the digital video cable.
I swung by my local Best Buy tonight to see if any Apple TVs had moseyed onto the shelves, but no such luck. I tried asking two guys about it -- the first one told me "you know, we don't sell many Apple products." (My response: Well, you sell this one, and you should have them in stock as they go on sale tomorrow). The second guy didn't think Apple sold TVs, but said he could look it up for me. He tried but couldn't pull up as much information on it as I could by just going to bestbuy.com and searching for "Apple TV," so I decided to leave and try again in the morning. Hopefully I can buy it online for in-store pickup, and avoid the whole mess.
Man, I wish Apple would throw us a bone with an Apple Store around here.
Comments
Wow! Cables are expensive!
They are. This is where electronic stores make their money. Cost on your typical $40 cable is usually somewhere around $1 to $1.50, and this is usually why you find them for so cheap on eBay. HDMI is insane, frankly. Last I checked Best Buy had some high quality HDMI cables for well over $100. Here’s the catch: ‘high quality’ relative to these cables usually doesn’t make a big difference. If you are really concerned about small improvements in picture quality and whatnot, brands like MONSTER are great for you, otherwise go with cheapo ‘junk’—it usually works just about as well. That garbage USB cable at Longs Drugs (or sometimes even in the .99 store!) will power your printer every bit as well as some gold plated $60 cable in a big store. eBay is your friend.
They'll be glad to let the Geek Squad charge you $90-$300 to install it, I'm sure.
You’ll be charging $129 or $159. I haven’t seen anything official (I didn’t even know they would be carrying Apple TV until I saw this article) but it will follow the same price model applied to the likes of Wireless Routers and the XBox 360. Best Buy preaches that these high prices are appropriate for many people (and admittedly they are) but they tend not to be for people who are comfortable with technology.
Cool I can't wait to buy their extended warranty!
I imagine you are being sarcastic? I hear a lot of sarcasm about those things (often-times, justly so). I prefer to buy from Apple so I can get AppleCare protection plans, personally, but as far as products go the best things to buy extended warranties on are portable devices with moving parts: MP3 players (i.e. iPods), portable DVD players, laptops, car stereo equipment. If the buyer actually remembers they have it and uses it, it pays off for most people (and saves others a great deal of pain). On a laptop, for example, it easily pays for itself with a battery replacement and at least one normal failure (including a frayed AC adapter – no MagSafe for you). If you are buying an Apple, buy it online from Apple, or buy it in the Apple Store. I couldn’t recommend entering a service contract with Best Buy with a Macintosh (GeekSquad is not equipped to support them satisfactorily). I buy service contracts on things like new game systems (I’ve received two new XBox 360s now without a single call to Microsoft). I don’t buy service contracts on games, movies, non-portable entertainment center equipment, most small items.
Back to Apple TV, if BestBuy cannot service it, they will probably offer what they call a ‘PRP’ or a Product Replacement Plan. PRPs are awesome because you don’t have to deal with their shoddy repair centers—if something happens, and it isn’t abuse, they’ll give you a new one (you’ll have to buy a new PRP if the exchange takes place outside the manufacturer warranty, but that’s good because you’ll be able to [extend your contract[). The drawback of PRPs is that they last two years (rather than the normal three of a PSP). That said, enterprising folk may enjoy the value of a PRP on something like an Apple TV, but normal folk, on average, will probably just lose money on it. If $299 is a huge investment for someone, I suggest they wait on Apple TV first for Apple to work out any main board bugs and whatnot, second to see if people are having serious problems with them. When things look good, buy with no warranty. If things don’t look good, buy with a warranty. In the end, though, you’ll probably still be better off with AppleCare.
Best Buy will be looking forward to selling $150 HDMI cables to get the best picture and $150 surge protectors to protect the valuable investment.
Sales floor people will offer the high-end HDMI cables.
The $150 surge protectors are those big monsters with noise filtering. I thought the noise filtering would certainly be a scam when I first heard out about it, but I was actually amazed to find out they do work—for certain things. Plasma televisions, for example, are highly prone to ‘unclean’ energy in your power, causing picture distortion, reduced quality, and sometimes much greater problems. Cutting those disturbances out of your power completely eliminates these problems. I use one of those power strips in my own entertainment center and it actually does make a difference with numerous devices (but then again, I don’t mind doing so, because my $200 power strip cost me about $40). Home users with most anything but a plasma television (or other certain high end televisions) and some disposable income should keep the hell away from these things. Any sales person trying to offer one in relation to the Apple TV as a good value is lying. (But don’t worry, they’ll be much more interested in the warranty.)
"This just in... Best Buy to carry Apple TV in ALL of its' retail locations!
On the down side, early reports indicate that Best Buy sales staff are unsure as to, quote, "what an Apple TV is", unquote, and there have been reported instances of Best Buy staff telling customers to buy an apparently non-existent product, "PC TV", instead. More on this as it becomes available."
.
Exactly! How many times will Apple get burned by Best Buy and its pimple-faced, PC-weenie clerks before it realizes that Best Buy is the enemy. Apple products have no more business in a Best Buy store than a BMW at a Hyundai dealership. In my neck of the woods Best Buy doesn't even list iPods in its Sunday flyers anymore, just Zune and Creative.
Yeah, I wish I could tell anyone with home theater equipment that you get absolutely NO added benefit by paying more for a digital cable. A $20 HDMI cable will transfer just as good of a signal as a $100 one. A $5 RCA cable will transfer digital audio just as well as a $50 one. Assuming you take care of it, a cheap optical cable will transfer digital audio just as well as an expensive one.
Yes, and no.
I'm not a high end cable nut. There are pairs of audio cables that sell for $20,000 per two meter length.
But, often the $20, made in China, HDMI cable, is not very good either. The shielding is often poor. If you use a short cable of, say three feet, or one meter, they might be fine. But when you get a long cable, there will be problems. Better cables not only have 100% shielding, which cheaper cables don't have (it's usually around 85%), but they have heavier gauge conductors as well. That provides a stronger signal over a long run, considered to be over 12 feet, three meters, or so. Better connectors have heavier gold flashing, usually 50 microns, rather than the 20 to30 microns cheaper versions have. There are other differences as well.
For example, buying a professional cable made by Belden will cost about two and a half times as much as the cheap cables, but is much better.
Buying the exotic cables with silver wire, and other odd configurations, is a total waste of money.
You MUST buy digital cables though. NEVER use audio, cables for anything other than audio. Video, and digital cables have the proper impedance of 75, or 72 ohms. Using the wrong cable WILL lead to poor signals.
Haha? maybe I can actually add something to this. I started working for GeekSquad three years ago as a GeekSquad technician, became the key repair technician (I was the guy who started at 7 AM every day to fix things before the store opened), worked my way into management where I stayed for a while before stepping down due to disagreements with the company, and finally became a super part time technician (working only a few days a week) fixing computers. I know ol? GeekSquad inside and out.
They are. This is where electronic stores make their money. Cost on your typical $40 cable is usually somewhere around $1 to $1.50, and this is usually why you find them for so cheap on eBay. HDMI is insane, frankly. Last I checked Best Buy had some high quality HDMI cables for well over $100. Here?s the catch: ?high quality? relative to these cables usually doesn?t make a big difference. If you are really concerned about small improvements in picture quality and whatnot, brands like MONSTER are great for you, otherwise go with cheapo ?junk??it usually works just about as well. That garbage USB cable at Longs Drugs (or sometimes even in the .99 store!) will power your printer every bit as well as some gold plated $60 cable in a big store. eBay is your friend.
You?ll be charging $129 or $159. I haven?t seen anything official (I didn?t even know they would be carrying Apple TV until I saw this article) but it will follow the same price model applied to the likes of Wireless Routers and the XBox 360. Best Buy preaches that these high prices are appropriate for many people (and admittedly they are) but they tend not to be for people who are comfortable with technology.
I imagine you are being sarcastic? I hear a lot of sarcasm about those things (often-times, justly so). I prefer to buy from Apple so I can get AppleCare protection plans, personally, but as far as products go the best things to buy extended warranties on are portable devices with moving parts: MP3 players (i.e. iPods), portable DVD players, laptops, car stereo equipment. If the buyer actually remembers they have it and uses it, it pays off for most people (and saves others a great deal of pain). On a laptop, for example, it easily pays for itself with a battery replacement and at least one normal failure (including a frayed AC adapter ? no MagSafe for you). If you are buying an Apple, buy it online from Apple, or buy it in the Apple Store. I couldn?t recommend entering a service contract with Best Buy with a Macintosh (GeekSquad is not equipped to support them satisfactorily). I buy service contracts on things like new game systems (I?ve received two new XBox 360s now without a single call to Microsoft). I don?t buy service contracts on games, movies, non-portable entertainment center equipment, most small items.
Back to Apple TV, if BestBuy cannot service it, they will probably offer what they call a ?PRP? or a Product Replacement Plan. PRPs are awesome because you don?t have to deal with their shoddy repair centers?if something happens, and it isn?t abuse, they?ll give you a new one (you?ll have to buy a new PRP if the exchange takes place outside the manufacturer warranty, but that?s good because you?ll be able to buy a new PRP). The drawback of PRPs is that they last two years (rather than the normal three of a PSP). That said, enterprising folk may enjoy the value of a PRP on something like an Apple TV, but normal folk, on average, will probably just lose money on it. If $299 is a huge investment for someone, I suggest they wait on Apple TV first for Apple to work out any main board bugs and whatnot, second to see if people are having serious problems with them. When things look good, buy with no warranty. If things don?t look good, buy with a warranty. In the end, though, you?ll probably still be better off with AppleCare.
Sales floor people will offer the high-end HDMI cables.
The $150 surge protectors are those big monsters with noise filtering. I thought the noise filtering would certainly be a scam when I first heard out about it, but I was actually amazed to find out they do work?for certain things. Plasma televisions, for example, are highly prone to ?unclean? energy in your power, causing picture distortion, reduced quality, and sometimes much greater problems. Cutting those disturbances out of your power completely eliminates these problems. I use one of those power strips in my own entertainment center and it actually does make a difference with numerous devices (but then again, I don?t mind doing so, because my $200 power strip cost me about $40). Home users with most anything but a plasma television (or other certain high end televisions) and some disposable income should keep the hell away from these things. Any sales person trying to offer one in relation to the Apple TV as a good value is lying. (But don?t worry, they?ll be much more interested in the warranty.)
I can't argue with what you've said, except the part about cables. Like it or not, there are poor cables, ok cables, and good cables. There are also hyped cables.
The difference between a poor cable and a good cable is pretty obvious, even the the person just looking at it. The connectors on poor cables often fail within a short time, or become intermittent. They also result in digititus, where you see breakup on the screen. If you are in an area where ther are doctors offices, or Ham operaters, x-ray machines, etc you will get interference. And by near, I mean a few blocks. Computers can also cause interference, as can a wireless network, your own, or someone elses.
Ever see the sticker on a readio, or other product that says " complies F.C.C regulation part 15", subpart "C"...? That refers to interference causation, and rejection.
What they are saying is that certain devices cause interference, and that this device complies with the regulations pertaining to the rejection of that interference.
Cheap cables don't comply, because cables aren't subject to the regulations.
Noise rejection is important, if your power has problems, or if a computer system, or network is on the same line in the home. I use a TripLite. don't buy the no name brands.
I can't argue with what you've said, except the part about cables. Like it or not, there are poor cables, ok cables, and good cables. There are also hyped cables.
Thank you for correcting me and clarifying my explanation. I should have been more specific about shielding and some of the potential problems (particularly in long stretches of network cable, or in audio/video cable). I also learned a few new things!
Thank you for correcting me and clarifying my explanation. I should have been more specific about shielding and some of the potential problems (particularly in long stretches of network cable, or in audio/video cable). I also learned a few new things!
Except for my spelling, and other crappy wording mistakes.
I can't argue with what you've said, except the part about cables. Like it or not, there are poor cables, ok cables, and good cables. There are also hyped cables.
The difference between a poor cable and a good cable is pretty obvious, even the the person just looking at it. The connectors on poor cables often fail within a short time, or become intermittent. They also result in digititus, where you see breakup on the screen. If you are in an area where ther are doctors offices, or Ham operaters, x-ray machines, etc you will get interference. And by near, I mean a few blocks. Computers can also cause interference, as can a wireless network, your own, or someone elses.
I was running my computer during a lightning storm a few days ago and I never did see a sparkle or artifact on my LCD when connected using a $20 2m DVI cable. We have a TIG and a MIG welder in the building and I've never experienced the problems that you describe, though the building phone system does crackle when the welders are in use. A 200mW WiFi transmitter in the next room doesn't cause me problems either, and there are TV/radio transmitter towers a mile or two away too. It's Philips brand cable, but it's still fairly cheap, it's fairly low-nonsense but it's got that braided wire look. I'm not seeing a point in going with anything that's more expensive.
I was running my computer during a lightning storm a few days ago and I never did see a sparkle or artifact on my LCD when connected using a $20 2m DVI cable. We have a TIG and a MIG welder in the building and I've never experienced the problems that you describe, though the building phone system does crackle when the welders are in use. A 200mW WiFi transmitter in the next room doesn't cause me problems either, and there are TV/radio transmitter towers a mile or two away too. It's Philips brand cable, but it's still fairly cheap, it's fairly low-nonsense but it's got that braided wire look. I'm not seeing a point in going with anything that's more expensive.
Well, you're lucky, what can I say? I can show you lots of crap on that cable though, if I plugged it into some of my test equipment.
But, Tv's are more subject to this that computer monitors. I also doubt that you have a 12 foot, or longer, cable going from your computer.
I have a small AC/DC TIG in my metal working shop downstairs, but, naturally, I never use it when I'm watching something.
Well, you're lucky, what can I say? I can show you lots of crap on that cable though, if I plugged it into some of my test equipment.
But, Tv's are more subject to this that computer monitors. I also doubt that you have a 12 foot, or longer, cable going from your computer.
12ft or longer aren't common lengths to use for home entertainment cables that I've seen. I do have a 25ft cable for my video projector and even then, RFI isn't a problem there.
Test equipment is kind of academic, it would be interesting, but if the signal and equipment is resilient enough then it's not going to be apparent, then it's not going to make a difference as far as the end user is concerned. I'd be concerned about it if it's medical equipment, but it's just entertainment equipment.
12ft or longer aren't common lengths to use for home entertainment cables that I've seen. I do have a 25ft cable for my video projector and even then, RFI isn't a problem there.
Test equipment is kind of academic, it would be interesting, but if the signal and equipment is resilient enough then it's not going to be apparent, then it's not going to make a difference as far as the end user is concerned. I'd be concerned about it if it's medical equipment, but it's just entertainment equipment.
Long HDMI cables are common in the home theater market, particularly with front projection, where they can be 25 feet or even 50.
If the signal is strong, and your equipment is good at rejection, there might not be a problem until the cheap cable starts to go wonky, which it will.
But test equipment is not academic. It will tell you what is happening. If your cable is causing problems because its bandwidth is too low, you will have a softer image than you should, but you likely won't realize it. If shielding isn't up to snuff, you might not see a really lousy signal, but you might have some "crawl" in high detail, and high contrast areas. You might not see it at normal viewing distances, because most people are too far from their Tv to see the fine detail, but it will be there. The occasional digital blocking may be blamed on the broadcaster, but it's interference getting through the shield, and causing a loss of digital integrity.
It's the same problem with USB, Firewire, and Ethernet cables. You may think they are working well, but your re-transmissions of packets, or bits, slows everything down. You don't realize it's happening, but it is.
Cheap cables are all different. Some may have decent shielding, but crappy connectors, some may be the other way around. Some may be bad at both.
At least you have a name brand, so that's usually at least ok. But there are many "brands" out there that have no parentage, such as store brands, etc. Those, I would recommend for everyone to stay away from.
And, as an aside, some cables that look to have gold flash, don't. The truth in packaging laws aren't as focused as I would like them to be, but I've seen cheap packages that say "gold colored connector pins", or some such wording. Those are NOT gold flashed. At least they are required to say that.
t's the same problem with USB, Firewire, and Ethernet cables. You may think they are working well, but your re-transmissions of packets, or bits, slows everything down. You don't realize it's happening, but it is.
At least data quality matters there. That's a place where it is much more important than worrying about whether there's a minor flutter that's not visible at standard viewing distances of an entertainment device. For digital TV, signal reception quality is a far greater factor than the quality of the digital video cable.
At least data quality matters there. That's a place where it is much more important than worrying about whether there's a minor flutter that's not visible at standard viewing distances of an entertainment device. For digital TV, signal reception quality is a far greater factor than the quality of the digital video cable.
I don't agree with that, but fine.
Man, I wish Apple would throw us a bone with an Apple Store around here.